Did some easy bodyweight exercises at home at night. Didn't go to the gym today - for a few reasons. Got to work really late, wasn't feeling particularly energetic and have been feeling off ever since the start of passing kidney stones over the past week (the weekend was no exception). Hopefully I'm done with the stones for a while. There was a week almost a month ago during which I ate a lot of salads which may have been the cause.

With stretching and foam rolling and having to take longer breaks between sets, some workouts are lasting almost 2 hours now, which are not feasible with my work schedule and mean I get home really late. I may have to change my workout routines to fit better into my schedule.

I watched a bunch of YouTube videos this past weekend in an effort to nail down my form a bit on the squat and deadlift. I recall that I used to pay really close attention to my form on each rep of each set, but as the weights got heavier I think I started slacking off without realizing it.

Not sure if it's just a mental issue or physical that's keeping me from performing well on squats, but 245 was a lot harder and heavier than it should have been considering a week ago I was up to 265. Form seemed a bit better though judging by the videos I took today. I took long breaks between sets on all the lifts today. It made a lot of difference in OHP. The first 3 sets I only waited about 90 secs between sets, the last 2 I waited 3 minutes and it made the lifts much easier. Form was great on deadlift through all the warmups, but seemed to falter on the work weight. Lower back still rounding a little. Needed mixed grip on the last rep to get it up.

Tried a to switch around my footing and leg/body form on the deadlift, hoping to find the sweet spot. Been banging up my shins a bit too. A big problem I'm having is the damn octagonal plates that my gym has. The loaded bar hits the floor and rolls either back or forth, meaning that I have to constantly readjust my stance on each rep or pull the weights from a slightly off angle.

Been home caring for my wife and newborn son the past 2 1/2 weeks, so no gym time for me. Not that I'd even have had the energy for it if the time was available. No sense trying to lift heavy on 3-4 hours of sleep a night. My diet also went to shit, dropped down to 183.5 (approximately 6 lb loss) for a bit there before I started to eat a little better a few days ago. I am back at work part time (couple days per week) for the rest of the summer so I'll be working out only on those two days, making slower gains in the gym. I am planning on getting back into the lifts this Friday, but I'll have to see how much sleep I get. I'll also need to have shorter workouts, so I'll be cutting back to 3x5, instead of doing 5x5.

Heh, Crossfit is tempting, but I don't know if I'm ready to switch out of pure strength training yet. Maybe when I hit 200 bench, 300 squat, and 400 deadlift...

5x5 Week 20

Monday 07/25/2011Body: 187.8 lbs

Squats1x10 @ 45 lbs1x5 @ 851x5 @ 1251x3 @ 1651x2 @ 1953x5 @ 225

OHP1x10 @ 451x5 @ 853x5 @ 110

Deadlift1x5 @ 1351x5 @ 1751x3 @ 2151x2 @ 2551x5 @ 285

Deloaded by 10% on all my lifts due to the 3-week break. Also tried 3x5 to see how long the workout would be. I only get a 1 hour lunch break from work and lately it has been taking me almost 1 3/4 hours to finish a 5x5 workout including stretching and rolling. This means that I end up leaving work an hour later which puts me right in the worst part of rush-hour traffic. The 3x5 workout took me about 1 1/4 hours - much better! However, I'll probably stick to 5x5 for the rest of the summer and go to 3x5 at the end of August when I go back to work full time.

I actually got about 5.5 hours of sleep last night, which was one of my better nights over the past 3 weeks so I felt good going to the gym today. This was still a difficult workout, as I haven't been sleeping well or eating properly during the 3 week break. My weight dropped to 183 lbs. during the break and slowly came back up after I started eating more. However, I definitely haven't been getting enough protein and fear a bit of muscle loss. Definitely feels good to be back in the gym again!

Been away from the boards for a bit. Mostly because I've been away from work most of the time over the past month and I check the forum while at work. I've got a bit of catching up to do!

Strength Week 21, 3x5

Friday 08/05/2011Body: 186.2 lbs

Squats10 @ 45 lbs5 @ 85 @ 1255 @ 1653 @ 1953x5 @ 230

Bench10 @ 455 @ 853 @ 1152 @ 1353x5 @ 155

Barbell Row10 @ 455 @ 853 @ 1153x5 @ 145

Hit all my marks, but it was a tough workout. I guess being out of the gym for such a long time, poor sleep, and diet on my off days has taken it's toll. I've dropped a bit of weight, and some of it is probably muscle. Oh well, it's a journey, and I just had to back-track a bit. I'll still get where I'm going (where-ever that is! ), it may just take a bit longer. Managed to fit the workout into 1 hour, fitting perfectly in my lunch break. Of course when the weights get heavier I'll start to take longer breaks between sets again and it will extend again. For now this will work fine. 3x5 should also be easier for me to manage as it will take less recovery in the near future which is good given my poor sleep and eating schedule. Next week I go back to work at almost full time, so should be working out 3 days a week again. Can't wait to get back up to my high lifts!

Wednesday 08/10/2011Body: 191.4 lbs - not sure what happened here! 5 lbs in 5 days, wow... I haven't really been eating much differently than the way I was back in June, except for probably getting a little less protein. I also don't think I look like I put on 5 lbs - have I been sleep-lifting?

Squats10 @ 45 lbs5 @ 855 @ 1253 @ 1652 @ 2053x5 @ 235

OHP10 @ 455 @ 853x5 @ 115

Deadlifts5 @ 1355 @ 1753 @ 2152 @ 2555 @ 295

All the lifts were challenging, almost didn't finish the OHP. I'm not sure if I'm getting to parallel on the squats again, I'll have to video myself next time to check. I felt as if I was going as deep as I could and still get the bar back up. On the last couple reps of the last set of squats I needed to pause before between for a moment. Put some lotion on my hands prior to the workout, kept them from completely drying out, although my grip suffered as a result. Used the mixed grip on deadlifts and was able to finish the set.

squats went well. Made a mistake on the bench and row. When I got to the gym I remembered my target weights incorrectly and went low by 10 lbs. No wonder they seemed relatively easy. Next time I'll do the weight I was supposed to on this workout. Had to do my exercises quick so I could leave early, managed to do everything including stretching in less than an hour, great!

Week 23 and Monday of Week 24 were skipped as I was having a nasty bout of kidney stones and the doc put me on antibiotics (not sure why, there was no infection...), which totally took the wind out of my sails. Felt like crap until the last pill wore off on Monday afternoon.

Strength Week 24, 3x5

Wednesday, 08/24/2011Body: 186 lbs

Squats3x5 @ 245

OHP3x5 @ 120

Deadlift1x5 @ 305

Made the squats but barely. Needed to take a few seconds in between some of the reps on the last two sets. I figured it would be difficult coming off a 9-day break with kidney stones and antibiotics and such. Had to push-press the last two reps on 3rd set of OHP, feeling tired. Deadlift was rough, really hard to do. I feel like I strained my back a bit much on the last two reps, it's feeling a sore now. I think part of my trouble with back strain on the deadlifts is the length of my torso and legs. I need to get almost into a deep squat position otherwise my back is parallel to the floor at the start of the lift. After heavy squats it is really hard for me to pull from that deep so I think I tend to start with my hips a little higher and pull with my back.

Really sore legs and back after Wednesday's workout. I definitely need to revisit my form on Deadlifts - I have to make sure I'm not pulling with my back. It was probably worse on Wednesday because I was so worn out from the previous week.

Strength Week 24, 3x5

Friday, 08/26/2011Body: 188 lbs

Squats2,2,2,4,4,3 @ 250

Bench3x5 @ 160

Rows3x5 @ 150

Legs and mid/lower back were super sore going into today - definitely felt it during squats. On the very first set I felt unsure so I cut it short and decided to do 7x2 instead of 3x5. Figured that would be easier on my back too. After third set I figured "what the hell" and decided to try for more reps, which I was able to get, although with shaking legs and very slowly. Also, my depth wasn't that great. Wanted to finish with 3x4 on the squats, but felt about to fail on the third rep of the last set. Oh well, I'll go for 3x5@ 250 next time. Bench and rows went great, a bit of struggle on the last rep of bench but got it up.

Ugh - I'm falling behind on this. Although I suppose it's not really necessary as I keep a meticulous lifting journal on my work computer.

My lifts lately have been sub-par, mostly due to low energy. Having an infant to care for really makes it hard to lift big, at least for me. I'm not getting full nights of sleep, and even when I get the rare 7 hours, it's not solid and I don't feel well rested. Granted the whole first month of baby was on 3-4 hours of sleep a night, so I guess I'm still catching up from sleep-deprivation. There have been plenty of days in the last 3 weeks that I've had to skip a workout due to lack of sleep or being too busy at work to take a decent lunch-break (I lift on my lunch-breaks).

My form was going to shit on the deadlifts, and I figured out why. My legs are too tired after squats so I would pull most of the weight with my back to compensate. I'm going to start dropping my squat weight on deadlift days and see if that helps. With my body shape, I need to get into a bottom-of-the-squat position to grab the bar and keep my back at a greater-than-horizontal angle.

I also need to revisit my diet, as I'm not really gaining any muscle. I'm not really gaining weight, and I'm not cutting fat. My body looks a bit more muscular, but still seems to carry the same fat percentage (maybe a little less, but too little to notice). I know that I should just shut-up and eat more protein and less carbs, but I have trouble doing that with my current dietary restrictions. I am avoiding as many high-oxalate foods as possible due to my kidney stones, and soy happens to be very high in oxalates. It's hard to pack in more protein per calorie without adding soy into my diet. I also don't want to be taking multiple protein drinks per day, as that starts to get expensive. I am currently taking calcium supplements with my meals to bind up oxalates in my intestines, which is what research has shown to be effective. I'm also getting citrates through lemon juice (1/2 cup per day, diluted with water) to alkalinize my urine (last test was at PH 7.5), although it might be that way for other reasons and the citrates aren't doing much.

Still lifting! Missed a day last week but this week was solid. Still doing 3x5 (1x5 on deadlifts) and making progress. This past week I lowered my squat weight on deadlift day and it made a difference. I was able to get better leg drive on the lift and my back wasn't as tight afterwards. Once I get to my limits on the 1x5 stage of stronglifts I'll either switch to endurance training or Madcow, haven't decided yet. Strength is addicting!

I also set some near-future goals that should be easily reachable with the rate I'm progressing now. By December 16th, the numbers I am looking to hit on my work sets are:Squat: 300 lbsOHP: 135 lbsDeadlift: 400 lbsBench: 200 lbsRow: 200 lbs

I don't care much about my 1RMs, which will probably be a bit higher. I'm also not using any assistance (belts, wraps, etc.) although I might start to use chalk for my grip on deadlifts if I have to.

Thanks, Kira. It's not as detailed day-to-day anymore as I don't feel the need to keep copy-pasting out of my personal journal.

Another solid week and I am back on track! I feel good about my weight goals, in fact I'll probably exceed at least a couple of them, as I'm pretty close already. I've never lifted this heavy before so I'm just not sure how my progress is going to pan out from here, so I set moderate goals. I think the toughest one will be the deadlift goal, as I'm farthest away on that.

Didn't think I'd make the OHP on the first go at this weight, but still did pretty well. Push pressed the missed reps to complete the sets. Felt myself arching my back pretty badly the first set, paid attention to it and corrected my posture for the rest. Deadlift was rough, did 2 overhanded then 3 over-under. Form was great on all warmups, but still became a bit stiff-legged on the work weight. My back doesn't feel tight or sore from them, so I probably used a little more legs than the last time I lifted 315. Still happy though and looking forward to upping the weight next time.

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